Jimmy Buffett’s sister is opening up about the singer-songwriter’s battle with cancer, which mirrored her own in many ways. Following the “Margaritaville” artist’s death on Sept. 1 at the age of 76 following a four-year battle with a rare form of skin cancer known as Merkel cell carcinoma, his younger sister, Laurie Buffett McGuane, opened up about fighting cancer alongside her brother in an interview with PEOPLE.
Laurie, 74, was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer just shortly after Jimmy’s diagnosis, recalling that when her brother found out she had cancer, “he brought the whole family and the dogs to Montana to be with me.” As both she and her brother had been diagnosed at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the family took their time together outside, even eating their meals together there.ย
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Laurie would eventually undergo surgery at Duke University and treatment in Montana that resulted in her being cancer-free, and she said that battling cancer brought her and her brother even closer together. “Jimmy and I became closer because of our cancers. We talked before and after our scans,” she explained. “We shared a club that nobody wants to join. I am thunderstruck that Jimmy didn’t make it.”
The “Come Monday” singer inspired Laurie throughout her treatment to keep living life the most normally she could, and she even kept riding her horse throughout. While Jimmy kept his cancer battle private from his fans, the beloved artist had been forced to cancel shows due to illness in the months before his death, which Laurie said was devastating to him. “Jimmy wanted to perform the shows that he had to cancel,” she says. “He brought joy to so many. I am very emotional now,” she shared. “When Jimmy was in the world, I felt safe.”
Jimmy’s passing was announced Saturday in a statement posted to his social media account and website. “Jimmy passed away peacefully on the night of September 1st surrounded by his family, friends, music and dogs,” said the statement, which was paired with a photograph of the artist sitting on a boat. “He lived his life like a song till the very last breath and will be missed beyond measure by so many.”
Following her brother’s death, Laurie posted a tribute to her brother on Instagram. “[Sister Lucy] and I were just with Bubba. We talked about our childhood where only siblings can relate,” she wrote. “I told him I’ve known him longer than anyone on the planet. He smiled with those twinkling blue eyes and squeezed my hand.”ย
